The United States and Japan will step up their defence cooperation to deal with the threat from nuclear-armed North Korea as tensions in East Asia remain high, officials from the two allies said on Thursday.

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He questioned whether the policy had been property thought through for several reasons, including that abuse victims are unlikely to speak out, especially to their boss, and that there was the potential for people to exploit the policy.

"The special DV leave is a good start but it doesn't include many of the people who need it," adding that poor, unemployed people were most at risk.

Ms Palaszczuk has urged the private sector to follow her government's lead, indicating there were already signs that it would.

"This is about government driving cultural change and together we can make a difference," she said on Wednesday.